by Bo Marchionte
Pittsburgh – Mitchell Trubisky was at his locker after OTA’s. While I made the rounds gathering interviews with other players, I saw Trubisky alone, which felt like the perfect opportunity to get to know this newly signed free agent.
“Let me grab a shirt,” Trubisky replied.
Shirtless he wanted to conduct the exchange of words fully clothed. His third team in three years there was plenty to discuss. He was after at all the second pick of the entire 2017 NFL Draft out of North Carolina. He started in Chicago and was a Pro Bowl quarterback, in 2018, for the Bears.
Surely, there was a lot of hot topics to bring up.
His time in Chicago. Playing in Buffalo behind the Bills Josh Allen last year. Thoughts on first-round pick Kenny Pickett now in the equation to start at quarterback. All valid questions but not for our first time getting aquatinted with one another.
So, I asked a good icebreaker.
How does it get out on the field and toss the ball around?
“Feel’s great,” a t-shirt covered Trubisky replied. “Love being part of this group. We got a bunch of great guys. We got some young guys and some new guys including myself.”
Trubisky looked in command during the OTA session, throwing crisp passes with some zip on the tail end. Even though this city and team are new to him, the game of football is far from that. The familiarity of X’s and O’s are the calming force for a guy looking to get a second chance at being a starting quarterback in the National Football League.
When Ben Roethlisberger announced his retirement, it was anyone’s guess on what direction Pittsburgh would elect to go when filling the shoes of a two-time Super Bowl champion. Pittsburgh did not take long to begin laying the groundwork for his potential replacement.
Day one of free agency, Pittsburgh acted fast to acquire Trubisky.
“Really that day (first day of free agency),” said Trubisky on when he thought he might be wearing a Steelers uniform. “It was down to a couple of teams.
“I was just praying on it. Thinking about it and really this was the spot I wanted to land but didn’t know their interest level. Once I found out they were interested to give me an opportunity I felt it would be a great spot for me and a great opportunity coming here.”
Despite a short shelf life in Chicago, Trubisky has shown flashes of both brilliance and disappointment. In Pittsburgh, the anticipation is he’ll become a steady orchestrator of the offense while rookie Kenny Pickett learns the nuances of the quarterback position at the highest level.
Amongst the projected starting quarterbacks in the AFC North, Trubisky has the second highest winning percentage of the four. With an 29-21 overall record his 58% winning percentage trails only Baltimore’s Lamar Jackson (37-12) who owns an impressive 75% winning tally as a regular season starter. Newly acquired Cleveland quarterback Deshawn Watson is 28-25 as a starter that equals a 52% winning percentage and Cincinnati’s Joe Burrow is 12-13-1 for a winning total of 48%.
“A great opportunity to lead a football team,” explained Trubisky. He spoke about the importance of OTA’s and getting the chemistry built up amongst teammates so when live action comes calling everyone can trust in one another.
“I’ve thrown to Pat (Freiermuth). I’ve thrown to Chase (Claypool) a little bit, have thrown with Cody White,” said Trubisky of the players he has worked with prior to OTA’s. “That’s why its important to be here so we can come together. Learn under a structured OTA and have those drills. Have those meetings which are important.”
Trubisky appears to be making the most of this opportunity both on and off the field to bond with his new team filled with new faces. Working with his receivers or paling around with the guys outside of work.
“I’d say Mason Cole,” Trubisky mentions as one of the players he has grown close to. “Me and him came in together on the same day. Him being a center and me being a quarterback. It’s a good relationship. I’m a quarterback so I love my o-linemen.
“Derek Watt we’re getting close. Couple other guys like Pat (Freiermuth), (Zach) Gentry. We got a really close group, and we will just continue to bond and grab dinners outside of here and those kinds of things.”
It’s a fresh start for Trubisky for franchise that is known in cultivating a winning atmosphere.
So, I thought it would be only fitting to add in a quote by teammate James Daniels. A former Bears offensive lineman drafted, in 2018, Daniels was one of the players quickly snatched up by the Steelers at the onset of free agency like Trubisky.
“It’s been great so far,” said Daniels. Coaches and everybody have been great. In Chicago, there were multiple times when the trainers were saying something different, and coaches were saying something different.
“Seemed like people weren’t on the same page. In my time being here so far. Everyone is on the same page. We’re all working towards the same goal.”
Trubisky must have experienced that same reality.
A heavy burden for a young quarterback to overcome in a passionate football city like Chicago. The change of scenery along with Mike Tomlin’s style of coaching could do wonders for Trubisky.
The word ‘opportunity’ Trubisky mentioned so much, truly does await him this up-coming season.